Ah, is this not happiness..

The rabbit's arms remind me of "Surprised kitty:"

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Chilling with my brothers and their wives, late in the evening.
Ah, is this not happiness...

 

Realizing that both you and your girlfriend and you both had the idea to get a Christmas tree at exactly the same time after years of feeling like we just didn't have time.
ah, is this not happiness.

 

By the way, @Gigalos, thanks for bringing this thread back. Whenever I see it listed in "Recent Threads," my hand starts moving to click on it so I can see the news - almost of its own accord.

... and that's a good thing. Aside from the fact that these are just fun to read, research in the field of happiness science and positive psychology has shown that taking a moment to bring attention to what we are grateful for has measurable positive effects.

This thread has been around for almost two years now and some people may not have been around at the beginning, so I thought I'd provide a refresher to invite newcomers to join in.

The thread was indirectly inspired by a 17th century Chinese playwright named Chin Shengtang. He was once stranded in a temple during a rainstorm for three days with a friend. While thus secluded, the pair compiled their list of the 33 best moments in life. This delightful literary project is called Chin’s 33 Happy Moments, and you can do it yourself. Just describe a happy moment, and then write, “ah, is this not happiness!” at the end.

And in case that isn't enough, Gigalos provided a terrific introduction to the thread in the first post, using a quote from Eckhart Tolle.

I like using the thread for the simple things that we might not notice but that can add a meditative beauty to our lives if we just attend to them. And attending to them is always more rewarding in a community.

By the way, reading the original list of 33 moments is like taking good medicine and I highly recommend it:
http://artoflivingguide.org/happiness/thirty-three-happy-moments
What amazes me is that it was written 350 years ago, halfway around the world and still has relevance. Some of them do make me laugh, though. Feel free to paste one of the moments from the original list into this thread if you ever want to rejuvenate it a bit.

 

That would be a lot! Nope, we're in the process of moving in together. Very excited!